uncategorized

• The purpose of the Love and Service Committee is to help us love ourselves and others through service. We promote service and provide information about service to ensure the health of the A.A. community, the continuance of the fellowship, and the effective fulfillment of our primary purpose. We do this by encouraging, sponsoring, and presenting workshops and other activities.

• The Area Chair appoints the committee chair. Members are all district Love and Service chairs and others with a desire to promote our purpose; who are present at a meeting of the committee.

• All members are voting members within the committee.

• Changes in committee guidelines go to the Guidelines Committee for referral to the Assembly if needed.

• A two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the committee is required for committee action.

• The outgoing committee chair will meet with the newly appointed committee chair at the end of the two year rotation to transfer all paperwork and update the new chair on what the committee is doing.

An important pamphlet for Love and Service work is Circles of Love and Service.

Area 28 Love and Service chair is open who can be reached at [email protected]

Spring 2017 Boomerang

• The purpose of the Area 28 Treatment Facilities Committee is to coordinate the work of the individual AA members and groups that are interested in carrying the message of recovery to alcoholics in treatment facilities.

• Any interested member can be on the committee in addition to the District Chair assigned by the Area Chair.

• Each member of the committee has a vote within the committee.

• The voting members are the Area Treatment Facilities Chair, the appointed District Chair, any district Treatment Facility chairs, and any interested AA members.

• Votes will be determined by a simple majority.

• The Treatment Facilities committee will always refer to the GSO guidelines / workbook to assist their committee.

• The treatment Committee chair will meet the newly appointed chair at the end of the chair’s two year term to transfer all paper work and update the new chair on what the committee has been doing.

• The Treatment Facilities Committee will cooperate with other committees in every way to assist in the development of their purpose.

• The committee shall meet at all Area committee meetings and Assemblies. The chair may call a special meeting at anytime.

See the General Service Office Guidelines for Treatment Facilities Committees.

There is also a Treatment Facilities Workbook.

Area 28 Treatment chair is open who can be reached at [email protected]

 

Archives Committee    

The mission of the Archives Committee is to oversee the operation and procedure of the Area 28 archives; to make proposals for creating Area Archives policy; and to aid the Area Archivist in the effort to preserve and protect the Area 28 Archives collection. The Archives Committee shall be responsible for reviewing all aspects of Archives policy and, based upon such reviews, the Archives Committee will submit reports, recommendations, and agenda items to the Area Committee, and the Area Assembly.

• The Archives Committee does not set policy, therefore, neither the Archives Committee, nor any of its members, shall be individually or collectively authorized or responsible for establishment of Archives policy, however they may recommend policy ideas.

• The Archives Committee shall be composed of: 1) The Area Archives Chairperson,  2) The Area Archivist, 3) The Alternate Archivist, 4)The Chairperson of any District Archives Committee, 5) District Chairs, or other persons, who are appointed to the Archives Committee by the Area Chairperson, Anyone who maybe elected to the Archives Committee by a vote of the Area Assembly, the Area Committee or the Archives Committee.

• All members of the Archive Committee must also be  members of  Alcoholics Anonymous.

• All members of the Archives Committee are eligible to vote on matters brought before the committee.

• Any member of Alcoholics Anonymous may participate in a meeting of the Archives Committee, but only committee members may vote.

• By a majority vote of the committee, persons who are not members of Alcoholics Anonymous may be allowed to speak at  Archives Committee meetings.

• Archives policy is approved by the Area Assembly.

• All voting in the Archives Committee shall be by a simple majority of voting members present.

• All votes will take place at Area Committee meetings  and Assemblies.

• A full set of keys to all locked Area Archives shall be entrusted to the Archives Chair, the Area Archivist, and the Area Chair.

The Area Archivist:

• Appointment of the Area Archivist: The Area Chairperson appoints the Archivist, who is then confirmed by the Area Assembly at its next meeting. The Archives Committee may make a recommendation to the Area Chair.

• The Area Archivist shall serve a term of two years, with the option to stand for reappointment for an unrestricted number of terms.

• The Area Archivist shall be a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.

• Should the Archivist be unable to fulfill his/her commitment, the   Archivist must notify the Area Chair of his/her intent to retire from the position.

• The expenses of the Archivist will be reimbursed to attend the Area 28 Round-Up to display Archives at the Round-Up.

The area archivist is Peter T, [email protected]

 The Alternate Area Archivist

• Appointment of the Alternate Area Archivist: The Area Chairperson appoints the Alternate Archivist, who is then confirmed by the Area Assembly at its next meeting. The Archives may make a recommendation to the Area Chair.

• The Alternate Archivist shall serve a term of two years, with the option to stand for reappointment for an unrestricted number of terms.

Alternate archivist is Bill H, [email protected]

See the General Service Office Archives site.

There are AA Guidelines for Archives and a pamphlet to learn about Archives in AA.

Area 28 Archives chair is Robin G who can be reached at [email protected]

Boomerang Committee    

• The appointive Boomerang Editor shall function as the final say in the content of the “Boomerang.” The Boomerang is the official newsletter of Area 28.

• The Boomerang will be guided by the G.S.O. Newsletter Guidelines as well as its own guidelines set up by its committee of (4) four rotating members, (addition) who each carry a vote only within the committee, and the editor who carries a vote at Area Committee Meetings and Assemblies.

• The Boomerang editor is appointed by the Area Chairperson for a term of (4) four years.

• Committee Members shall be appointed by the Editor.  Committee Members may serve up to two (2) years if they so choose.  Other interested AA Members may also serve on the committee where they will have a vote within the Boomerang Committee.

• At the editor’s rotation, current editor will turn over all electronic data, paper archive files, and any equipment or software purchased, to the new incoming editor and make themselves available to assist with the first issues of that rotation if needed.

Area 28 Boomerang editor is Deborah M who can be reached at [email protected]

Cooperation with the Professional Community (CPC) Committee

• Members of the Cooperation with the Professional Community Committee provide information about A.A. to those who have contact with alcoholics through their profession.  This group includes health care professionals, educators, and members of the clergy, lawyers, social workers, union leaders and industrial managers, as well as those working in the field of alcoholism.

• The Area CPC Chair shall be available to visit and/or communicate with the Districts about working with professionals.  This shall include helping establish  and support District CPC Committees.

• The Area CPC Committee shall cooperate with and support the Area Public Information (PI), Area Corrections, Area Treatment and Area Bridging the Gap (BTG) Committees.

•  The Area CPC Committee shall communicate through printed material(s), presentations and other means as appropriate.The Area Chair appoints the CPC Committee Chair following the Election

• Assembly in October and shall serve a two-year term beginning in January the following year.

• The Area CPC Committee consists of a Chairperson appointed by the Area Chair, a District Chair appointed by the Area Chair to sit on the committee, any District CPC Chairs and any AA member who desires to work with the Professional Community.

• The Area CPC Committee meets at each Area 28 Meeting (4 times per year), and at the Spring and Fall Assemblies.  The CPC Chair may call for other meetings if a need arises.  The Area CPC Chair should attend all committee meetings.  In the event that the CPC Chair cannot attend a scheduled meeting then it is the responsibility of the CPC Chair to find a substitute for that meeting.

• Each member of the CPC Committee has a vote within the committee and a simple majority shall constitute a passing vote within the committee.

Area 28 CPC chair is Tom F. who can be reached at [email protected]

The General Service Office has developed Guidelines for CPC.

There is also a CPC Workbook available online.

There is a wealth of CPC materials available from GSO. Go the the GSO website at http://www.aa.org/lang/en/catalog.cfm?origpage=244&product=102.

Since our guidelines suggest that speakers often come from other districts, setting up programs can be challenging. As part of a joint initiative with Public Information, the area28 contact and coordinator to help arrange speakers is Mike L who can be reached at [email protected].If you have a request for a school speaker or are trying to arrange a program for students or for professionals, please feel free to contact him for assistance.

A major CPC initiative is trying to reach out to health care professionals through a Sponsor Your Health Care Professional program and packet. For a powerpoint presentation about this initiative see Info On Sponsor Your Healthcare Professional.

Materials included in the Sponsor Your Healthcare Professional packet and available on this website: About AA: Newsletter for Professionals, Note to the Professional and Note to the Sponsoring AA member.

Doing presentations is an important part of CPC and PI work. Here are some notes on doing presentations from the CPC Workbook and a model/sample/template presentation adapted for Area 28: in a PowerPoint presentation format or as a PDF file for presentation.

Anonymity is a major issue in doing both Public Information and Cooperation with the Professional Community (CPC) work. The AA Pamphlet, Understanding Anonymity is an important resource and here is an excellent recent article on anonymity.

Purpose

This site is maintained by Area 28 Public Information Committee General Service for the purpose of providing information to GSR’s, Area Committee Members, and other interested AA’s within Area 28. The site is maintained by members of Area 28.This site is maintained through volunteer efforts and we only ask that information posted not require frequent update.

This site is in line with the April 1997 General Service PI conference action where AA now includes “Electronic Media” as yet another method to carry the AA message.

This site is not endorsed nor approved by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. or any given Internet Service Provider. It is an AA service solely provided by the Area 28 General Service Website Committee. To adhere to our tradition of personal anonymity, last names of AA members will not be listed nor email addresses that include full last names. Some of the items at this site may have been published by AA World Services, but do not assume that this implies continued approval by the General Service Conference for their use.

Alcoholics Anonymous®, AA®, and The Big Book® are registered trademarks of Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. The Grapevine® and AA Grapevine® are registered trademarks of The AA Grapevine, Inc.

The Committee expresses its heartfelt thanks to Area 54, Northeastern Ohio, for assistance with this website. Much of the material is adapted from their excellent effort. Problems and inaccuracies are, of course, solely our responsibility.

The Committee and Area also express thanks for the invaluable help of the Portland Central Service Office. The CSO performs many valuable services including keeping the online meeting lists current and listing events from throughout the Area.

For more information on the relationship between CSO and the AA service structure, please see Intergroups.

Personal Anonymity and email

There is a very clear difference between posting last names on a website and using them within an email or email address. A website is a public communication vehicle not unlike “Press, Radio, and Films”. Carrying our AA message on a website or other media is within our traditions as long as last names or facial pictures are not posted.

The Area Web page has taken great pains to ensure that last names are not used anywhere, including within the website address. On the other hand, personal email between members and/or non-members is no different than using the US Mail (snail mail) or telephone. Disclosing AA membership in this way does compromise our tradition of maintaining anonymity at the public level.

For more information, see Understanding Anonymity and Anonymity Online.

Guidelines

The General Service Office has published Guidelines on the Internet which we strive to follow. Other than what’s been covered, these will be established as needed.

Events

Events taking place in Area 28 are listed by the Portland Central Service Office. They use the same criteria for including AA events as is used by the General Service Office and the Grapevine: that the event is put on by AA members, for AA members and about AA:

Q. What are the criteria for listing A.A. conferences, conventions and similar events in Box 4-5-9 and the Grapevine?

A. G.S.O. defines an A.A. event as one put on by A.A.s, for A.A.s, about A.A. These events must be two or more days long. There would not be enough room to list one day events or group anniversaries. (BOX 459, GSO, February-March, 2008)

To submit an event, please go to http://www.csoaamaine.org/submitevent.htm.

Literature  Committee

• The purpose of the literature committee is to be a resource to help any individual, district, or committee with their literature needs. Chair should have a working knowledge of all conference approved literature and have one copy of each to help anyone with their requests  to see what they need before they order it. The chair should also be ready to assist in ordering literature with copies of forms.

• The literature committee should also maintain a small inventory of service literature, available at cost from GSO.

• The committee shall be ready to set up a display of and sell said service literature at Assemblies and other events, at cost.

  • Newly revised conference approved material should be available.

• The chair is appointed by the Maine Area Chair following the Election Assembly in October and shall serve a two-year term beginning in January of the following year.

• The committee shall include the appointed chair, any appointed district chairs, all district literature chairs, and any district or group literature committee members.

• Each member of the committee has a vote within the committee and a simple majority shall constitute a passing vote within the committee.

• The committee shall meet at all Area Committee meetings and at Area Assemblies. The chair can call a special meeting at any other time.

• The literature chair is responsible for turning over all inventories, information, and supplies to the incoming Chair prior to the January Maine Area Committee Meeting.

There are General Service Office Guidelines for Literature Committees.

Area 28 Literature chair is Donna R, who can be reached at [email protected]

 

Guidelines Committee

• The purpose of the Guidelines Committee is to assist in the writing and maintaining of guidelines for Maine Area Officers, Committees, and functions, as well as update and maintain the Maine Area 28 Workbook.

• The committee will consist of the Alternate Delegate as Chair, a District Chair assigned by the Area Chair, all district guidelines chairs and a GSR selected by the Guidelines Committee Chair from each of the four regions north, south, east and west of Area 28.

• Each member of the committee has a vote within the committee.  Any member of A.A. may attend the Guidelines Committee meetings, and all who attend have a voice.

• The committee will meet at each Area Committee Meeting and at each Assembly. Special meetings may be called by the Alternate Delegate/Committee Chair if necessary.

• Guidelines given to the committee must be approved by a simple majority vote of the committee in order to be presented to the Area Committee for placement on Assembly agendas.

• The Area 28 Guidelines Committee Chairperson will hand over all notes, minutes and information regarding the Guidelines Committee to the next incoming Guidelines Committee Chair within 30 days of the new Alternate Delegate/Guidelines Chairperson being elected.

• The current chairperson is responsible for passing forward all information and documents for the committee to the next/incoming chair for the committee.

Area 28 Alternate delegate, Byron B, is the Guideline Committee chair who can be reached at [email protected]

In Area 28 there is a Central Service Office in Portland and a DownEast Intergroup.

What is a Central Office or Intergroup?

“A central office (or intergroup) is an A.A. service office that involves partnership among groups in a community – just as A.A. groups themselves are partnerships of individuals. A central office is established to carry out certain functions common to all the groups – functions which are best handled by a centralized office – and it is usually maintained, supervised, and supported by these groups in their general interest. It exists to aid the groups in their common purpose of carrying the A.A. message to the alcoholic who still suffers.”
Reprinted from A.A. Guidelines, Central or Intergroup Offices with permission of AA World Services, Inc.

CSO’s and Intergroups are not part of the AA Service Structure but are considered part of AA. As Box 459 from the General Service Office puts it:

Q. Is a central office or intergroup office A.A.?

A. Yes. Central offices and intergroups provide vital local services and Twelfth Step opportunities. A central office or intergroup is an A.A. service office that involves partnership among groups in a community. A central office/intergroup is established to carry out functions common to all the groups, and it is usually maintained, supervised and supported by these groups. It exists to aid the groups in carrying the A.A. message. For further information, see “A.A. Guidelines on Central or Intergroup Offices.”

 Meeting Schedules

Meeting schedules of groups in Area 28 are maintained by the Portland Central Service Office & Downeast Intergroup. As a service to the fellowship, and in keeping with A.A.’s primary purpose of carrying the A.A. message to the alcoholic who still suffers, we are providing information on how to get in touch with the Portland CSO and the Downeast Intergroup.

To submit an online meeting change, please go to http://www.csoaamaine.org/meetingchange.htm. NOTE: you still need to submit the change form to our Area28 Registrar or directly to New York. Click here for the forms.

Events

Events taking place in Area 28 are listed by the Portland CSO. They use the same criteria for including AA events as is used by the General Service Office and the Grapevine: that the event is put on by AA members, for AA members and about AA.

Q. What are the criteria for listing A.A. conferences, conventions and similar events in Box 4-5-9 and the Grapevine?

A. G.S.O. defines an A.A. event as one put on by A.A.s, for A.A.s, about A.A.  (BOX 459, GSO, February-March, 2008, p 9)

To submit an event, please go to http://www.csoaamaine.org/submitevent.htm.

The Downeast Intergroup can be reached at www.downeastintergroup.org

The Central Service Office at www.csoaamaine.org